Conditions Governing Use

The donor of this collection has transferred rights to the intellectual property they created to the Center. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.

Conditions Governing Access

No special access restrictions apply.

Researchers may access born digital materials by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.

Preferred Citation

[Description of item], [Box/folder number], Bonnie L. Brown Papers, A&M 4511, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Brown, Bonnie L., 2021

Gift of Brown, Bonnie L., 2023 March 02

Loan of Brown, Bonnie L., 2023 March 02

Gift of Brown, Bonnie L., 2024 September 06 Loan of Brown, Bonnie L., 2024 September 06

Biographical / Historical

Bonnie L. Brown is a former representative in the West Virginia House of Delegates (1982-2012) best known for her advocacy for women's rights.

Brown was born Bonnie Louise Wonderley in San Francisco, California to Thelma Asbury and Wilbert Wonderly on October 5th, 1942. After being raised between California and Oregon, she attended Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon, where she met fellow student Gary Leigh Brown, and they married in 1965 June. They both transferred to the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho to continue their education.

After Gary L. Brown's graduation from the University of Idaho with his doctorate in chemical engineering, the couple moved to Charleston, West Virginia for his employment with Union Carbide. During the move from Idaho to West Virginia in 1969, Brown gave birth to her daughter Mollie Brown in Kansas. After the birth of her second child, Joel, Brown graduated from the Morris Harvey College (now the University of Charleston) in Charleston, West Virginia in 1972 with a Bachelor of Arts in English. She was elected president of the Charleston Chapter National Organization for Women (NOW) in 1975. That same year she attended the National Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) Task Force as a representative for West Virginia. She also organized the first "People's Lobby" around public interest legislation as the legislative coordinator for the West Virginia Citizen's Action Group.

In 1976, she stepped down as the president of Charleston NOW to become the president of the state chapter, West Virginia NOW. She would hold this position until 1978. During her time as president of West Virginia NOW, she was the West Virginia delegate to the National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas in 1977 and the West Virginia convenor for the U.S. National Women's Agenda. In 1977, she founded the now-defunct Women's Repertory Theatre in Charleston, West Virginia, which sought to combine politics and women's theater.

In 1978, she stepped down as president of West Virginia NOW to serve as the legislative coordinator and chief lobbyist. During this time, she was active as a consultant and field organizer for the national ERA movement and as a lobbyist in West Virginia, Washington, D.C., Virginia, Kentucky, Delaware, Florida, and Vermont.

She began a formal political career in 1982. She represented District 23 in the West Virginia House of Delegates from 1982-1988 and 1990 and District 30 from 1992-1994 and 2000-2012.

During her time in the legislature, she was a member of a variety of committees and commissions, most notably the Constitutional Revision Committee, Health and Welfare Committee, Judiciary Committee, Legislative Commission on Juvenile Law, Select Committee on Children and Families, Women's Legislative Caucus, and South Charleston Human Rights Commission.

After an unsuccessful run for reelection in 2012, Brown did not attempt to run for another political position. As of 2025 April, she lives in Charleston, West Virginia.

Scope and Contents

This collection contains the papers of Bonnie L. Brown, a feminist activist and former representative in the West Virginia House of Delegates (1982-2012). The majority of materials are various collected papers from conferences and events Brown attended between 1974 and 2022.

Prevalent topics in the collection include the International Woman's Year, the Women's Repertory Theater in Charleston, West Virginia, the West Virginia House of Delegates, Charleston Chapter National Organization for Women (NOW), and West Virginia NOW.

Also of interest is Brown's collection of metal political and social commentary pins promoting the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), NOW, and women's rights. There are also collected T-Shirts relevant to her feminist activism and political campaigning.

Brown loaned several scrapbooks covering her time in the West Virginia House of Delegated to the WVRHC for scanning. These digital files are available for viewing upon request. They mostly include photographs from events such as ERA marches, political rallies, political campaigning, and sessions in the West Virginia House of Delegates. There are also some digital scans of notes and election ephemera.

The collection is divided into two series:

Series 1. Papers (Boxes 1-5)

- An addendum of 2023 March 02 can be found alongside the original donation in boxes 1-4. - An addendum of 2024 September 06 can be found in boxes 1-3 and 5.

Series 2. Ephemera (Boxes 5-6)

- An addendum of 2024 September 06 can be found in box 5.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Activism
• Charleston (W. Va.)
• Equal rights amendments
• West Virginia Feminist Activist Collection
• Women political activists
• Women politicians -- West Virginia
• Women's rights